Sandro Tonali revealed that a ten-minute conversation with Roberto De Zerbi was all that was needed to convince him to sign for Tottenham over other interested clubs.
Tonali joined Spurs earlier this summer from Newcastle United in a club-record transfer that could reach as much as £100million.
The 26-year-old had spent three seasons at Newcastle, but was widely reported to be leaving St James’ Park this summer after a disappointing season for the Magpies.
Tonali attracted interest from a host of Premier League clubs, with Manchester City and Manchester United both credited with interest in the summer window.
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Premier League champions Arsenal had also considered a move for Tonali before deciding to focus their interest on his former Newcastle teammate Bruno Guimaraes.
Tonali revealed that he did hold talks with one other English club, but ultimately felt the pull to join Tottenham after conversations with fellow countryman De Zerbi.
‘My first impression was really positive,’ he told reporters in Sydney this week. ‘When you are happy after a 10-minute speech, it’s everything, everything is perfect.
‘The gaffer was Italian, Roberto. I knew him. Roberto really cares about his work, his football. He said, “The project will be tough but will be perfect for me, for you, for the city, and we can do one of the best seasons, because we have big players. We just have to put a lot of work in”.
On his discussions with the club, he added: ‘When we spoke with Tottenham, we decided to sign for this team. They spoke with 100 per cent passion, 100 per cent seriousness.
‘For this city, for my life outside of football for my family, OK, it’s like 10 per cent. Roberto and the director made the difference to the deal.
‘I spoke after two minutes with my wife and my family and I said, “Probably it will be one of my best decisions of my career”. She told me, “You have 100 per cent the control over this decision”. I wanted to speak with her because it’s our life.’
Tonali also revealed that his preference had been for a move back to his homeland, but it quickly transpired that no Italian club would be able to meet Newcastle’s lofty asking price.
‘We had decided to come back in Italy but it was impossible for the money,’ he said.
‘England was our solution and we found the best solution in England for me, for my career, for my football, for my happiness, for my family.
‘I spoke with two teams. I understood after 10, 15 minutes that Tottenham would be my next team.’
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